Ben Lyon
- Known for
- Acting
- Born
- February 6, 1901
- Died
- March 22, 1979
- Birthplace
- Atlanta, Georgia, USA
From Wikipedia Ben Lyon (February 6, 1901 – March 22, 1979) was an American actor and a studio executive at 20th Century Fox. Born in Atlanta, Georgia, Lyon entered films in 1918 after a successful appearance on Broadway opposite Jeanne Eagels. He attracted attention in the highly successful film Flaming Youth (1923), and steadily developed into a leading man. He was most successfully paired with some of the leading actresses of the silent era including Pola Negri, Gloria Swanson, Colleen Moore, Barbara La Marr, Viola Dana, Anna Q. Nilsson, Mary Astor and Blanche Sweet. He had success as an actor in the 1930 film Hell's Angels. The film was a major success and brought Jean Harlow to prominence, but Lyon's performance as an heroic World War I aviator was also highly regarded. For the next decade he was constantly in demand, but his popularity began to wane by the early 1940s. By the mid-1940s he was working for 20th Century Fox. On July 17, 1946 he met a young aspiring actress named Norma Jeane Dougherty.[2] After his first meeting with her he stated that she was "Jean Harlow all over again!". He organized a color screen test for the actress, renamed her, and finally signed her as Marilyn Monroe to her first studio contract. During World War II, Lyons and his wife, actress Bebe Daniels, settled in London. The couple, along with the comedian Vic Oliver, starred in the radio series Hi, Gang!, which ran from 1940 to 1949. Hi Gang was succeeded in 1950 by Life with the Lyons, which also featured their real life son Richard and daughter Barbara, and had a run on BBC and independent television from 1954 until 1960. Lyon married actress Bebe Daniels in June 1930. They had two children: daughter Barbara in 1932 and a son Richard whom they adopted. Daniels suffered a severe stroke in 1963 and withdrew from public life. She suffered a second stroke in late 1970. She died at the couple's London home in March 1971. In 1974, Lyon married the actress Marian Nixon whom he had known since the 1920s. On March 22, 1979, Lyon and his second wife Marian Nixon were vacationing together on the Queen Elizabeth 2 cruise ship near Honolulu, Hawaii, when Lyon suffered a fatal heart attack. He is interred in the Chapel Columbarium at Hollywood Forever Cemetery next to his first wife, Bebe. For his contribution to the motion picture industry, Ben Lyon has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 1724 Vine Street.
Filmography
The Lyons in Paris 1955
as Ben
Life with the Lyons 1954
as Ben Lyon
The Dark Tower 1943
as Phil Danton
This Was Paris 1942
as Butch, Sydney Chronicle Reporter
Hi Gang! 1941
as Her Other Half
- Confidential Lady
Confidential Lady 1939
as Jim Brent
- I Killed the Count
I Killed the Count 1939
as Bernard Froy
Stardust 1938
as Roy Harley
- Down to the Sea
Down to the Sea 1936
as Steve Londos
Dancing Feet 1936
as Peyton Wells
Frisco Waterfront 1935
as Glenn Burton
Navy Wife 1935
as Dr. Peter Milford
Together We Live 1935
as Max
- Screen Snapshots Series 14, No. 8
Screen Snapshots Series 14, No. 8 1935
Actor
Lightning Strikes Twice 1934
as Steve Brewster
Crimson Romance 1934
as Bob Wilson
I Spy 1934
as Wally Sawyer
The Women in His Life 1933
as Roger McKane
I Cover the Waterfront 1933
as H. Joseph 'Joe' Miller
Girl Missing 1933
as Henry Gibson
Hollywood on Parade No. A-3 1932
as Self
Hat Check Girl 1932
as Buster Collins
The Crooked Circle 1932
as Brand Osborne
Hollywood on Parade No. A-1 1932
as Self
By Whose Hand? 1932
as Jimmy Hawley
Week Ends Only 1932
as Jack Williams
The Big Timer 1932
as Cooky Bradford
Lady with a Past 1932
as Guy Bryson
Her Majesty, Love 1931
as Fred von Wellingen
Compromised 1931
as Sidney Brock
Bought! 1931
as Nick Amory
Night Nurse 1931
as Mortie
My Past 1931
as Robert 'Bob' Byrne
Aloha 1931
as Jimmy Bradford
Indiscreet 1931
as Tony Blake
Misbehaving Ladies 1931
as Phil Hunter
The Stolen Jools 1931
as Ben Lyon
The Hot Heiress 1931
as Hap Harrigan
Hell's Angels 1930
as Monte Rutledge
A Soldier's Plaything 1930
as Georgie
What Men Want 1930
as Kendall James
Alias French Gertie 1930
as Jimmy Hartigan
Lummox 1930
as Rollo Farley
The Flying Marine 1929
as Steve Moran
The Quitter 1929
as Neal Abbott
All Faces West 1929
as Matthew
The Air Legion 1929
as Dave Grayson
Das tanzende Wien 1927
as Jonny Conzaga
Life in Hollywood No. 2 1927
as Himself
For the Love of Mike 1927
as Mike
- The Tender Hour
The Tender Hour 1927
as Wally McKenzie
The Perfect Sap 1927
as Herbert Alden
The Prince of Tempters 1926
as Francis
The Great Deception 1926
as Cyril Mansfield
The Savage 1926
as Danny Terry
The Reckless Lady 1926
as Ralph Hilliwe
Bluebeard's Seven Wives 1926
as John Hart / Don Juan Hartez
The New Commandment 1925
as Billy Morrow
The Pace That Thrills 1925
as Danny Wade
Winds of Chance 1925
as Pierce Phillips
The Necessary Evil 1925
as Frank Jerome
One Way Street 1925
as Bobby Austin
So Big 1924
as Dirk DeJong
Wages of Virtue 1924
as Marvin
Wine of Youth 1924
as Lynn Talbot
Lily of the Dust 1924
as Lt. Prell
The White Moth 1924
as Douglas Vantine
Painted People 1924
as Don Lane
Flaming Youth 1923
as Monty Standish
Potash and Perlmutter 1923
as Boris Andrieff
The Custard Cup 1923
as Dick Chase
- The Heart of Maryland
The Heart of Maryland 1921
as Bob Telfair
Open Your Eyes 1919
as Harold Connors
Credits from TMDB.